Warm Water’s Soothing Effects

Warm Water’s Soothing Effects

The following blog post has been summarized from the article, “The Benefits of Aquatic Therapy for the Elderly and Disabled,” written by Dana Richard Freeman on Yahoo.Voices.

Exercising and rehabbing in an aquatic therapy pool is beneficial to all, regardless of age, gender and fitness level. There is no restriction or limit to who can reap the benefits of exercising in a warm water therapy pool. However, for this specific post, we will look at the reasons why warm water therapy is effective for those with disabilities and the aging population.

For these populations, exercising on land can be very painful and difficult because they are 100% weight-bearing on their joint. However, by stepping in a warm water pool, the individual will experience ‘unweighting’ due to water’s natural buoyancy properties. As Freeman puts it, “Water provides a measure of buoyancy that reduces the resistance brought on by gravity outside of an aquatic environment.” Water also provides a level of tolerable resistance that can increase the individual’s muscle strength and increase their overall range of motion. The biggest and most important benefit of warm water therapy for this specific population, is that it allows for greater ease of movement.

Water eliminates the fear of falling and creates a fun and therapeutic environment for patients to exercise. Freeman makes another great point, stating that with warm water therapy, patients are able to begin their therapy as soon as they are immersed in the water, foregoing the need for a lengthy “warm-up” session.

The use of aquatic therapy is effective for myriad problems. Key benefits that residents and paitents can experience with a HydroWorx aquatic therapy pool include:

Balance activities without the fear of falling or injury

Exercise and weight loss with little to no pain

Improved leg strength to help remain active and reduce falls

Ease joint and muscle pain from arthritis, fibromyalgia or other chronic pain issues with warm water

Increased compliance with rehab and wellness programs

Faster rehabilitation from various surgeries

“The goal of aquatic therapy is to increase the independence of all patients, with or without disabilities or chronic conditions, of all ages. All physical therapy seeks to improve the wellness of all patients; aquatic therapy has been shown to be of particular benefit to the elderly and patients with disabilities.”

Are you interested in learning more about who can benefit from warm water therapy? The reach is continuing to expand! Download this one page tip sheet to explore the expanding patient mix benefiting from aquatic therapy.